Fruit packing device



Oct. 25, 1938.

E. E. cHEwNlNG 2,134,437

FRUIT PACKING DEVICE Filed May 27, 19:56

- UNITED STATES Patented ct. 25, 1938 l :2,134,437v FRUIT PACKING DEVICE Emmett Eugene Chewning,v Perry, Ga.; assigner nichefourth to James Palmer Etheridge and l one-fourth, to William Cooper Jones, both of Perry, Ga.

PATNTOFFICE fApplimion May e7, 1936,l serial No. 82,108 claims. (01. 217-3) I It has become universal practice in packing fruit such Vas peaches, apples, oranges, or thelike, to arrange a layer of fruit `to appear when the cover oisthe'basket is removed, said layer being .5 arranged in-concentric circles, and Vof fruitoi uniformV size, the upper layer being convex in the top ofV the basket. i f ,I

To this end it is the practice tofprovide a dish-shaped disk implement upon which the said layer is arrangedandby means of a sheet metal collar containing a .layer of paper the entirecontents ofthe basket areplaced in the collar and liner, whereupon the collar is removed and the basket inverted over the `liner and fruit, Awhich is'then inverted for removal of the dish-shaped member, whereupon the cover of the basket is put into place and secured. Y Y

Since the fruit tends. to roll to the center of the dish-shaped implement, it requires considerableskill to arrange the said vfirst layer of fruit,

and packers with this skill command high wages.

- It has been proposed in the patented art to'pro- `vide an implement having a canvas diaphragm supported by a post to hold the diaphragm in an upwardly arched position above the disk whereby the rst layer of fruit may be arranged easily and the fruit and implement may be lifted oft of the post, allowing the fruit toysettle to its final position. y

It is an object of the present invention to pro-vide a cushion member which goes with the fruit when sold and which will enable an unskilled packer to pack the fruit as well as is now done by skilled packers,

It is a further object of the invention to provide a method of packing fruit which may be carried out by unskilled labor.

Further objectsV of the invention will appear from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawing showing'an illustrative embodiment of the invention, and wherein:-

Figure l is a plan view of the cushion; Fig. 2 is a central transverse section on line V 2--2 .of Fig, 1;

Fig. 3 is a central vertical section of a basket in inverted position packed by the process of the invention. y p

AsV shown the cushion, which is desirably formed of paper material and may be formed by pressing ofV paper pulp to its nished form, cornprises'a disk I0 having an inwardly inclined margin or rim II about its periphery and desirably integral therewith.

In its initial form the cushion is vshown as upwardly convex in its position for'use. Since the disk must have suflicient rigidity to support'the weight ofthe initial layer of fruit, indicated in dotted lines at I2, the cushion may be made of lighter material if its rigidity is increased by means of corrugationsv I3 shownas radially arv rangedV upon the cushion.v

For convenience in indicating the center of the cushion and for locating the central fruit piece, a' depression 'Ill is shown in which depression 10 the central fruit member maybe placed. Y

The cushion I0 may be utilized with the present 'form of sheet metal dish-shaped implement, and

the rim Il of the cushion should telescope with the-.paper liner I5, as shown in Figure 3. Instead of using the devicevwith the sheet metal disk, the usual convex cover I6 of a basket may be used, upon which to initially place the cushion,

collar and liner.1 The sheet.` metal collaris not shown in the drawing. When sovused, the collar 20 niaybe'removeclV and the basket may be put in its place and secured whereupon the completed package may be inverted for storage,

There is in use a basket having a removable bottom as well as a removable cover. The present 25 invention may be utilized with this form of basket, which is illustrated in Figure 3. When so used, the cushion member Il) may be supplied with the basket for sale with the cushion already in place in its initially arched position, arching 30 inwardly from the cover of the basket.

When so used, it is only necessary to remove the bottom of the basket, place the Iinitial layer of fruitupon the cushion upwardly arching in the inverted basket, whereupon the remainder of 35 the contents of the package may be poured into the basket, the weight thereof causing the initial layer and the cushion to be reversed in its arched position by gravity, whereupon the bottom of the basket may be applied and the package is ready 40 for shipment.

It will be seen that by the method of the invention no act is necessary on` the part of the packer to reverse the arching of the initial layer of fruit, since this act is purely automatic under 45 influence of gravity acting upon the superposed fruit in the inverted basket.

When the device and method of the invention ,are carried out with the solid bottomed basket Cil facilitating the completion of the package and enabling the packing to be done by unskilled labor.

According to the present practice of packing fruit, each basket is treated as a unit and the packer must hold the fruit of the initial layer with one hand while inserting individual pieces with the other hand to complete the rings. By use of the present invention it is quite possible to place the baskets referred to above, with the bottoms removed, on a travelling conveyor or assembly line. An unskilled laborer may handle a bag of graded fruit or the mouth of a canvas hose supplied by gravity from a bin of graded fruit, for the top layers, and allow a stream of fruit to flow upon the cushion device of the invention, so guiding the flow as to form the rings of the initial layer. A second. operative may control the discharge from a chute so as to nish lling each basket as it passes, the weight thereof causing sinkage of said initial layer to nal position. A third operative may place the bottoms, when the package will be complete.

Minor changes may be made in the physical embodiment ofthe invention, or in the steps of the'process, within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A preformed liner element for a fruit package in the form of a cushion cover comprising a disk of paper pulp material initially concave upon the side to be the outside in the package and of rigidity to support Van initial layer of fruit but to yield to added weight of more fruit, whereby to reverse its concavity `to become outwardly convex in `the finished package.

2. A preformed liner element for a fruit package in the form of a cushion cover to form a part of the completed package, comprising a disk of paper pulp material initially concave upon the side to be the outside in the completed package and having suflicient rigidity to support an initial layer of fruit but insufficient to support the entire contents of the package in inverted position, and an annular rim integral about the edge of said disk, projected from the initially convex side of said disk.

3. A preformed liner element for a fruit package in the form of a cushion cover to form a part of the completed package, comprising a disk of paper pulp material initially concave on the side to be the outside in the completed package, said disk formed with stiiening corrugations and of rigidity to support an initial layer of fruit but to yield to added weight of the mass of fruit contents of an inverted package whereby to reverse its concavity to become outwardly convex in the finished package.

4. A preformed liner element for a fruit package in the form of a cushion cover to form a part of the completed package, comprising a disk of paper pulp material initially concave on the side to be the outside in the completed package, said disk formed with radial stiffening corrugations and of rigidity to support an initial layer of fruit but to yield to added weight of the mass .0f fruit contents of an inverted package whereby to reverse its concavity to become outwardly convex in the nished package.

5. A preformed liner element for a fruit package in the form of a cushion cover to form a part vof the completed package, comprising a disk of paper pulp material initially concave upon the side to be the outside in the package, formed with a central concavity upon its initially convex side and with radial corrugations extending from said concavity towards its margins, said disk of rigidity to support an initial layer of fruit but -to yield under the weight of added fruit superimposed on said initial layer to reverse its concavity to become outwardly Vconvex in the finished package.

.EMMETT EUGENE CHEWNING. 

